


Feeding the Flames

by JenniM777



Series: Klance AU Month [24]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-02
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-07 22:44:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,542
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17969462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JenniM777/pseuds/JenniM777
Summary: Prompt: Klance AU Month - day 24 Camp Half Blood





	Feeding the Flames

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a while since I read Percy Jackson so I'm a bit rusty filling in the gaps with this one.

The first time Keith saw Lance he just knew he was a Poseidon brat. He came to Camp Half Blood looking like he just walked off the beach all tanned and dark hair with sun-kissed highlights. He was also like a fish in the water. The boy was all arms and legs and could probably out-lap Michael Phelps if given half a chance. But no….he was a child of Apollo. And that was just as fitting as well, God of sun and archery and music and poetry and all that. Because Lance was just that, all sunlight and full of life, he never missed with the bow and arrow, and when he spoke it was like he spouted poetic words of romance and charm and if Keith didn’t hate the romanticism of it all he would probably be just as charmed as everyone else was with Lance. Scratch that, he was well and truly charmed and as much as he refuted the claims, he enjoyed when Lance turned his attention to him.

Keith on the other hand was an enigma to those at Camp Half Blood. Everyone thought for sure he was another spawn of Hades, he was even compared to Nico D’Angelo. Something about being broody, dark shaggy hair, and leather jackets. But no. Keith had enough anger and ire that he matched his godly father temper for temper. He was a true child of Ares.

And now here they were, the two of them complete opposites, on a mission to recover the lost lion relics. There were five in all and so far they had recovered all but one, the red lion relic. It hadn’t been easy and it didn’t seem to be getting any easier. They were dirty and tired, beat up, running low on resources and no way to contact any one from Camp Half Blood. Keith’s irritation was at an all-time high and Lance was not helping with his incessant chatter. And really it wasn’t Lance’s fault at all when Keith just finally lost all patience and snapped at him, “Could you just shut up already?”

Lance stopped short and just stared at Keith. There was a flash of something like hurt in his eyes but he recovered quickly, “Sorry, I didn’t know it bothered you so much.”

And Keith watched as Lance turned around and started walking again, “Lance, wait no! I’m sorry.”

Lance kept walking and his voice was quiet. Far more quiet than it usually was, “It’s ok, I get it. Sometimes I just talk too much. Don’t worry about it.” And even if Keith didn’t like the non-stop commentary from Lance, this new overly quiet Lance was a million times worse. It wasn’t just the quiet; it was the sadness radiating from Lance as well. His shoulders slumped, his head hung just a bit and he seemed to curl in on himself with his hands jammed into the pockets of his worn jacket. Keith felt like an absolute ass and no matter what he said or did, Lance just kept silent.

Keith could admit when he was wrong, and he truly tried. The days before had passed in a bit of blur what with all of Lance’s rambling but now, the last five days had been truly miserable. There was nothing to cut the somber seriousness of the mission, no light-hearted joking from Lance trying to make Keith laugh. Keith would not admit that he liked it when Lance tried so hard to make him laugh. But this silence between them was oppressive.

Night was just beginning to settle around them. They were making camp near a small lake, Lance was gathering something to hopefully make a fire and Keith was refilling some bottles with water from the lake when he felt something. He wasn’t sure what it was but there was burning inside that made it feel as if his veins were on fire. He turned slowly and his eyes darted around taking in the shadows in the trees. There was something out there. He walked slowly towards Lance and reached for his sword behind his back. Lance must have picked up on Keith’s alertness because his eyes were now darting to and fro and he was slowly reaching for an arrow, his bow already in his hand.

Whatever was out there must have been serious because Keith could feel a surge of energy and he hadn’t even started fighting. From the corner of his eye he could see Lance glowing and his eyes burning the same color blue as the hottest part of a flame. This was bad, the power of their godly parents were coursing through them giving them the strength they were going to need and they hadn’t even seen what they were dealing with yet.

Without warning there was a rustling in the trees and it seemed like hundreds of shadows surrounded them. They were blazing fast and it was all Keith and Lance could do not to be overwhelmed by their enemy. Keith couldn’t get a good look at whom or what they were fighting. All he knew was they were shrouded in darkness and his sword never seemed to find purchase, never sliced through anything except smoke and shadows. He saw Lance’s arrows fly true but seemingly just pass through whatever target they were aimed at. They fought endlessly and yet they made no headway. Keith could feel his sword growing heavier in his hands, his arms feeling like lead. They would not be able to keep up like this. He was getting sloppy, his swings were wide, his footing wasn’t as steady, he struggled with each blow to lift his sword and then suddenly he was down. He doesn’t know how it happened but he was pinned on the ground, a black shadowy foot pressed to his back. There wasn’t a whole lot of pressure and Keith was sure there was some sort of magic involved because he couldn’t move. He was able to twist his head just a bit to the left and saw Lance on his knees, arms being held behind his back by one of the shadows.

Keith tried to move, tried to get a hand on his sword, anything to get off the ground but nothing was working. Finally he gave up and yelled, “What do you want from us?”

There was no answer. The shadows moved about and Keith could only watch as Lance was pulled to his feet. He was led to a large boulder and thrown a bit rough. The shadows maneuvered Lance and pulled his arms out to the side and his head pushed flat against the flat side of the rock. Lance’s eyes were wide and his face was pale and when they locked eyes Keith could see the sheer terror reflected in them. He twisted and turned, he screamed, he fought but couldn’t get loose.

“Let go of me. Lance! Let him go. What the hell do you want from us?”

The shadows walked between Keith and Lance and several times they would bend down and peer into their faces as if trying to figure out a complex puzzle but they never spoke. And then suddenly out of nowhere Keith saw a flash of silver. If possible Lance’s eyes got even wider as one of the shadows walked towards him with a large sword in its hands. Keith felt his insides turn to ice. He kicked and pushed against invisible bonds.

“No! Lance, you have to move. NO! Get away from him, leave him alone!” But it seemed the more Keith fought, the more Lance seemed resigned to whatever fate he was about to face. Keith was frantic; he was screaming louder and louder, begging for them to let Lance go. His heart was beating double time; his voice was getting raspier from all the shouting and he was fighting back sobs. He couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to hurt Lance, why would they want to take someone so pure from this world. He would do anything to keep Lance from getting hurt. He could only watch as the sword was lifted above Lance’s head. He knew that it would take one strike and that sharp blade would end it all. It was only a matter of seconds before it would all be over. He knew he wouldn’t be fast enough but if he could just get loose he would take Lance’s place. And somehow, as soon as he had the thought he was draped over Lance’s body. He wrapped his arms around Lance’s head and tensed, waiting for the blow that never came.

Keith’s body was shaking and below him he could feel Lance shaking just as much. His eyes were squeezed shut and he kept waiting until finally there was a warm pressure on his back. He slowly blinked open his eyes and saw only one of the shadows remained. There was no face but if he had to describe it, it was as if the shadow was peering into Keith’s eyes, looking for something and seemingly satisfied with what he saw. In the next instant, Keith blinked and where the shadow had once been, in his place was a small red lion.

~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~

Keith and Lance had been back at Camp Half Blood for about two weeks after their mission and Keith was still exhausted. He still wasn’t sure what those shadowy things were or what they were trying to prove. He also had no idea how one second he was staring at the small red lion relic and the next second they were both back at Camp Half Blood dirty and exhausted.  Keith had learned long ago not to question the things that happened in the world of mortals and immortals, you never got a straight answer and sometimes the ones you got weren’t necessarily what you wanted. But something had been unsettled inside of him since his and Lance’s mission had ended. He wandered aimlessly most of the time not really letting himself get involved in any of the activities. Even today, he refused to join in when the others started a game of capture the flag. He found himself near the lake and spotted Lance. With a sigh he headed to where Lance was sitting. It was a fairly cool evening and Lance was dressed in his orange Camp Half Blood t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Keith could see the small gooseflesh on Lance’s skin as he shivered a bit in the cool air. With a sigh he shrugged off his leather jacket and draped it over Lance’s shoulders.

Lance glanced up in shock at Keith but his hands reached up and pulled the jacket tighter. Keith flopped a bit hard onto the ground and crossed his legs. He stared out over the water and fidgeted with the grass, “I’m sorry I was such a dick towards you on our mission.”

Lance turned his head to face Keith but it was several moments before he finally spoke, “You weren’t a complete dick. You did save my life there at the end.”

Keith felt his breath catch at the mention saving Lance’s life. He shrunk in on himself as he thought back to that moment, the complete fear of that blade slashing down in a terrifying arc towards Lance’s neck. He hadn’t realized how tense he had gotten until he felt a warm hand on his back, “Hey, you ok?”

Keith nodded, “Yea. Sorry, I just….I don’t like thinking about that.”

Lance’s hand never moved from Keith’s back. “How did you do it? How did you get free when I watched you? I saw you struggle to move. I couldn’t get free either so how did you do it?”

Keith turned to face Lance and he knew Lance would be able to see the truth before he could even say it. But Lance deserved to know. Lance deserved the truth no matter the cost to Keith. “I think it was because I wanted to take your place. I think that’s the only way it would have worked. They wanted to know how far we would go for each other.”

Lance let out a soft gasp. Keith knew then that Lance understood what he had been getting at, “You idiot. Why would you want to take my place? They would have just killed you instead.” Keith nodded, “I know.”

“I don’t understand.” Keith blinked and tilted his head back and looked at the sky, “I didn’t want to live in a world where you didn’t exist. I would rather take your place because you have so much joy and life inside of you. The world needs more of you.”

Lance shifted onto his knees in front of Keith and grabbed his shoulders, “Don’t you say that. Don’t you dare down play yourself Keith. You are just as important as anyone else. Do you hear me?”

Keith shook his head and wiped at a tear on his cheek, “What could I possibly have to give?”

Lance let out a soft chuckle, “Are you kidding me? You have so much fire in you. You fight for everything you believe in, you never back down in the face of adversity. You kept fighting even when we were outnumbered. You fought even when it seemed like there was no hope.”

Keith ducked his head and took a ragged breath, “I was just scared Lance. I was scared they were gonna kill you and I didn’t….I couldn’t….I….”

Keith couldn’t stop the sob that came out. He couldn’t stop his shoulders from shaking. He leaned forward with his head against Lance’s chest and gripped at his own jacket around Lance’s shoulders. He felt strong arms wrap around him and a hand pressing his head against a chest with a steady heartbeat.

He’s not sure how long he stayed there, pressed against Lance’s chest but eventually he pulled away and wiped at his eyes. He kept his head down and whispered a raspy, “Thanks.”

Lance placed his hands on either side of Keith’s face forcing him to look Lance in the eye, “You ok now?”

When Keith met Lance’s eyes he felt a shift. The atmosphere seemed to warm up considerably around them and he felt when Lance’s fingers trailed from his cheeks down his neck. He watched as Lance licked his bottom lip and shifted closer. Keith reached forward and grabbed at his own jacket around Lance’s shoulders and slowly pulled him in. When their lips finally met Keith let out a soft gasp. Keith was on fire, his veins burned red hot and pulsed under his skin. He wrapped his arms around Lance and pulled him into his lap, his lips moved along Lance’s jaw and down his neck and finally he buried his face into the crook of Lance’s neck. He felt Lance press soft kisses into his mess of hair and finally, finally the restlessness that he had been feeling left and he felt the tension that had settle in his shoulders finally leave. He sunk into Lance and for the first time in a long time he felt as if he was where he was supposed to be.

 


End file.
